NEWARK, NJ — Getting around downtown Newark on the weekends will be easier for many Newark Light Rail customers, thanks to a new schedule that will double weekend service on the extension to Broad Street Station beginning Saturday, June 9.

“We are adjusting weekend service to provide better access to the recreational, entertainment and shopping destinations in downtown Newark,” said NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Richard Sarles. “The new schedule provides more frequent service for customers traveling between Newark Penn and Broad Street stations, and enhances convenience for customers who will no longer have to change trains to connect between Newark Light Rail services.”

Starting June 9, on both Saturdays and Sundays, Newark Light Rail will operate on a 15-minute schedule, providing more frequent early-morning and late-evening service for all customers and doubling the existing service level on the extension to Broad Street.

The new 15-minute schedule will provide new connection opportunities for Morris & Essex Lines customers and better access to weekend events at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), Newark Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium, The Newark Museum and other downtown destinations.

NJ TRANSIT will also introduce “thru service” between Grove Street, Newark Penn and Broad Street stations, enabling weekend customers to travel between the Newark Light Rail’s main line and the extension to Broad Street without changing trains at Newark Penn Station.

About Newark Light Rail

Newark Light Rail provides more than 20,000 weekday trips between 17 stations in Newark, Belleville and Bloomfield. The system provides a vital link between employment, educational and cultural destinations in downtown Newark and the city’s northern suburbs, as well as NJ TRANSIT rail and bus routes.

In July 2006, NJ TRANSIT opened a one-mile extension of Newark Light Rail between Newark Penn and Broad Street stations, serving destinations that include the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), Newark Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium, The Newark Museum and the Broad Street commercial corridor.

NJ TRANSIT is the nation's largest statewide public transportation system providing nearly 857,000 weekday trips on 240 bus routes, three light rail lines and 11 commuter rail lines. It is the third largest transit system in the country with 162 rail stations, 60 light rail stations and more than 18,000 bus stops linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia.